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7/1 NJPW KIZUNA ROAD RESULTS

7-1-21 Results from New Japan's Kizuna Road 2021 on New Japan World From Korakuen Hall, Tokyo Japan: 

1 - DOUKI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and El Desperado vs. Jado, El Phantasmo and Taiji Ishimori

This is was a preview of the upcoming match for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title between Desperado and Ishimori.   

Both Desperado and Ishimori looked very sharp as they started the match.   Bullet Club was pulling their shenanigans in the match, trying to frustrate Suzuki-Gun.   

DOUKI hit a Daybreaker on Ishimori and trapped him in the Italian Stretch #32.   Ishimori got the rope break.   Ishimori distracted the referee and DOUKI got smacked with Jado's kendo stick.   ELP hit DOUKI in the gut with Sudden Death.  Ishimori hits a Tombstone Gut Buster on DOUKI and goes for the pin.  Kanemaru breaks it up.   

Ishimori picks up DOUKI and hits a Bloody Cross.   Ishimori pins DOUKI.

Ishimori and Desperado trade trash talk as Bullet Club gets their hands raised in the ring.

2 - BUSHI, SANADA, and Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr. and Taichi

Naito teased the referee before the match by chasing him out of the ring.  

SANADA and ZSJ started the match which is always a great pairing.  Both men traded reversals on holds and submissions.   LIJ kept ZSJ in their corner and worked on his left arm.   Suzuki-Gun immediately took the match to the floor and bodies were flying into guardrails.   Suzuki and ZSJ focused on Naito and locked an ankle submission and hammerlock on him.  They threw Naito into their corner and punished him with punches and strikes.  Taichi tagged in and blatantly choked Naito in front of the referee, who did break it up.    BUSHI and Suzuki tagged in.   BUSHI hit Suzuki with a dropkick which sent him to the floor.   BUSHI hit Suzuki with a Tope Suicida through the ropes.   BUSHI threw Suzuki back in the ring and hit a Bushi Roll.  Suzuki kicked out at one.  Suzuki caught BUSHI with a big boot to the face and a punt kick.   Suzuki threw a vicious elbow and tried for a Gotch Piledriver.   SANADA makes the save.   Taichi tags in.   SANADA gets kicked to the floor.    Naito gets in the ring and ZSJ and Taichi double team him.   Pace of the match is fast.   Taichi and BUSHI are in the ring.   Taichi plants BUSHI with a Dangerous Backdrop.   Taichi traps BUSHI in a Stretch Plum.   Naito and SANADA try for the save but Suzuki and ZSJ lock them in submissions.   

BUSHI taps out.  Suzuki-Gun are the winners.

These next three single matches are a preview of tomorrow's NEVER Openweight 6-man Championship match.   Tenzan, Kojima and Nagata (all are 50+ years in age) refer to themselves as The Third Generation and are looking for a chance at another title.  

3 - YOSHI-HASHI vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan

YOSHI-HASHI was working really stiff here.  He bruised the chest of Tenzan with wicked chops.   He was almost heelish, but he is the champion so it makes sense.   Tenzan locked in the Anaconda Vice and YOSHI-HASHI dashed to the ropes.   Both men were exhausted but yet kept hitting each other with strikes and headbutts.   Tenzan when for the Anaconda Vice again.    YOSHI-HASHI powered out to his feet.  Tenzan hit an STO.   Tenzan with a two count.   Tenzan misses a top rope headbutt.  More strikes and headbutts.  YOSHI-HASHI hits a Super Kick and a double knee to the face.  YOSHI-HASHI applies the Butterfly Lock.  Tenzan tries to power out, but YOSHI-HASHI takes him back to the mat and locks it in tighter.

Tenzan taps out.  YOSHI-HASHI wins.

Wow, great match!   YOSHI-HASHI was awesome in the match.  He looked and performed like a fighting Champion.   It will be fun to see YOSHI-HASHI in the G1 Climax this year.

4 - Hirooki Goto vs. Satoshi Kojima

The match immediately goes to the floor, with both men getting thrown into guardrails.  Kojima throws Goto into the ring post.   Kojima goes for a Lariat, but Goto ducks and Kojima hurts his right arm on the ring post.  Goto targets the right arm with submission holds, trying take away Kojima's main weapon, his Lariat.  Goto tries for a cross-arm breaker but Kojima gets to the ropes.  Goto hit a back suplex.   Kojima countered with his own back suplex.   Goto got caught in the corner and was hammered with machine gun chops from Kojima.  Goto slumps to the mat.  Kojima comes off the top rope with a left elbow smash.  Two count.    Goto counters with his own lariat.   Goto hits a spinning high kick and a bulldog out of the corner.   

Goto goes to the top rope but Kojima stops him.   They both fight on the top rope.  Kojima gets punch to the mat.  Kojima gets up and hits a Lariat on Goto who falls from the top rope to the ring floor.   Ouch!   Kojima goes for the pin.  Two count.   They both start throwing hard elbows against each other's faces.   Goto comes off the rope with lariat and Kojima meets him with a Lariat of his own.  Goto is stunned.   Kojima nails a Koji Cutter.   Two count.  Kojima tosses his right elbow pad, looking for a final knock out.   Goto grabs him in a fireman's carry and hits an ushigaroshi.   Both men struggle to their feet.   Kojima hits a left arm Lariat.  Two count.

YOSHI-HASHI is at ringside to support his partner.  

Goto picks up Kojima for a suplex.   Goto hangs his feet on the top and drops Kojima headfirst onto his knee with a GTR.  Two count.   

Goto ducked two Lariats from Kojima, but Kojima connected with a third Lariat.    Kojima pins Goto.    

Another great match.  Despite his age, Kojima can always deliver.   I really enjoy the single matches of Hirooki Goto.   He has to share ring time with his tag partners which is understandable.    When he is one-on-one, and healthy, Goto's matches are great

5 - Tomohiro Ishii vs. Yuji Nagata

Ishii slapped Nagata in the face in the early moments.  Nagata got pissed and went after Ishii with a cross-arm breaker.  Ishii got to the ropes.   Ishii came back with slaps to the face and stomps to the head.  Nagata returned the favor with stiff elbows.   Ishii threw chops and strike kicks to Nagata's back.    Only 5 minutes in and Nagata's chest was bruised.   Nagata threw 3 kicks to the chest of Ishii, which sounded like gunshots.   No leg slapping in New Japan.   Both men looked exhausted already.   Nagata went to the top rope but Ishii blocked his attack and took Nagata down with a superplex.    Ishii tried for a lariat but Nagata reversed it into a cross face submission.   Ishii gets a break.   Nagata hits a top rope Exploder suplex.   Two count.  Nagata measured Ishii for a kick strike.   Ishii blocked the kick and headbutted Nagata in the chin.   They rocked each other with more open handed slaps.   Ishii was dazed.   Ishii hits a desperation high kick which catches Nagata in the ear.  Both men are down.   Ishii goes for a lariat but Nagata throws him with another Exploder.   Ishii gets up and hits a lariat.   Two count.  Ishii hits a Sliding Lariat.    Two count.   Nagata blocks a brainbuster attempt and hits Ishii in the head with a heel kick.  Nagata hits a high knee to Ishii in the corner.  Nagata goes for the pin.   Two count.   Nagata hits a release German Suplex.  Nagata hits a brainbuster.    Two count.

Ishii hits his own brainbuster.   Ishii pins Nagata.  

Make it three in a row.   Wow, Nagata and Ishii beat the hell out of each other.   Both men could barely stand after the match.   YOSHI-HASHI was there to help his partner with water.  Nagata pounded the mat in frustration after the match.     Both men headed back to the locker room.   Neither man had much to say in the interview area.   I expect another fight in their Title match.

Tomorrow night, the Kizuna Road 2021 Tour concludes with CHAOS members YOSHI-HASHI, Hirooki Goto and Tomohiro Ishii defending the NEVER Openweight 6-man Titles against Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima and Yuji Nagata. 

I see CHAOS retaining the titles here.   Los Ingobernales de Japon challenged and lost to CHAOS several weeks ago.   If Third Generation beats CHAOS, what does that say about LIJ?    Third Generation are great wrestlers, but I cannot see them winning the titles. 

After tomorrow night, the next New Japan Tour is Summer Struggle in Sapporo on July 10 and 11.  Those nights will be headlined by:  1) El Desperado vs. Taiji Ishimori for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title and 2) SANADA and Tetsuya Naito vs. Zack Sabre Jr. and Taichi for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Titles.

Summer Struggle 2021 will continue throughout the month of July.

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